Make the most of your holiday leftovers with these sumptious recipe ideas.
photography by: Louis Hiemstra
Turkey leftovers:
Camembert and turkey sandwich
Turkey soup
Vietnamese turkey salad
More ideas:
Stir-fry
Stir-fry shredded turkey or other meat with julienne vegetables such as carrots, baby marrows and peppers. Add sliced button mushrooms and your favorite stir-fry sauce or add soy sauce, 1 tsp brown sugar and 1 Tbsp sesame oil.
Hearty turkey and corn chowder
Combine 1 medium sized caramelized onion with 1 large peeled and diced potato, 1 x 14 oz (400g) can of sweet corn and 22 fl oz (650ml) of good chicken stock in a large pot. Cook over a medium heat until the potato is soft. Blend half of the mixture until smooth, return to the heat and stir in shredded cooked turkey and ¼ cup reduced fat cream. Heat through and serve warm garnished with chives and seasoned with salt and pepper.
Wholewheat turkey bagel
Light and healthy. Combine leftover turkey meat (or other meat) with chopped cucumber and celery, thinly sliced red onion or cooked beetroot and diced fruit (apple, pineapple, cranberries or apricots). Halve and lightly toast whole wheat bagels. Top with greens of choice. Spoon some of the the meat and salad mixture on top of the green and dress with a homemade yoghurt dressing or other preferred dressing.
Roast beef burgers
Place lefotver roast beef, diced red onion and fresh parsley into a blender and pulse until well blended and the roast beef crumbled. Transfer to a large bowl and add 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs and 1 free range egg for each cup of hamburger mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper and roll the mixture into patties. Pan-fry patties in a little olive oil until sufficiently browned on both sides (or to your liking) and serve on toasted ciabatta buns with arugala, sliced roma tomatoes, diced beetroot and tzatziki.
Christmas cake leftovers:
Christmas pudding truffles
Moisten leftover christmas pudding with brandy, kahlua liqueur, cherry or orange liqueur and crumble to make a soft mixture. Roll the mixture into small balls and dip into melted dark chocolate. Allow to set on wax paper and enjoy. Use a dipping tool to dip truffles or use a toothpick. For a variation, toss almost set truffles into roughly chopped nuts, cocoa or coconut.
Festive ice cream loaf
Soften 2 cups of berry sorbet or liqueur flavoured ice cream and spoon into a loaf tin, lined with baking paper to make the first layer. Place in the freezer until firm. Stir 1 cup crumbled chrismas pudding or cake into 2 cups softened vanilla ice cream and add spoon on top of the first ice cream layer. Return to the freezer and allow to set. To serve, simply unmould the ice cream loaf onto a cold serving platter and gently peel off the baking paper. Cut into thick slices and garnish with fresh berries and mint.
Cranberry sauce leftovers:
Sweet comforts
Drizzle warmed cranberry sauce over breakfast pancakes, waffles or serve over your favourite ice cream.
Cranberry and turkey wraps
Spread tortilla wraps with cream cheese, top with thin layers of mixed greens, diced turkey and sliced avocado. Drizzle with warmed cranberry sauce and roll it all up. Cut in half diagonally and enjoy.
Baked brie and cranberry quesidillas
Top one side of a tortilla with brie slices, add shredded turkey meat if desired and dress with cranberry sauce. Fold and press to seal edges. Brush the top lightly with olive oil and transfer quesidilla to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 400°F (200°C) or until the cheese has melted and tortillas are golden brown. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing into wedges. Serve alongside a crisp green salad.